Faro 3D scanner to map Roswell crime scenes

3D imaging company Faro has a new client that will be using its 3D scanning technology to help solve crimes. The Roswell Police Department has purchased a Faro Focus3D Scanner which allows them to create 3D maps of crime scenes that they can then navigate and study using a computer or mobile device.

Faro is a provider of 3D measurement, imaging and realization technology. Its Focus3D Scanner is able to scan millions of points in its immediate surroundings to create a detailed 3D color image. By moving the scanner to different locations and taking multiple scans, users can create a highly accurate 3D map of the locality.

Roswell PD is using a FARO Focus3D S that provides a range of focus of between 0.6 and 120 meters (2 and 394 ft) and a margin of error of just 2 mm (0.08 in). According to Faro, the scanner takes just a matter of minutes to produce "dense point clouds" of its surroundings, something that crime scene photographers couldn't come close to replicating.

Faro says that the Focus3D Scanner is as simple to use as a digital camera. Once users have taken a number of scans from different locations, the data can be downloaded to a computer where a 3D rendering is stitched together. Users can then fly through the map, rotate their view and zoom in or out as required. Measurements can be taken using the software and markers left to flag up important locations, such as for evidence.

"It’s going to give the judge and the jury a very accurate graphical image of what the scene consists of," Detective Scott Stevenson was reported as saying. He also believes that the technology will be of help in "almost any investigation that we go to."

Watch the introductory video below to find out more about the Focus3D Scanner.